Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

Jim McDougall · 7th April 2008, 05:06 AM

Hi Mark,
The actual grip/pommel in brass with lionhead seems of the style seen in mid 18th century on American and some English swords, but the beveled solid brass hilt seems more like English swords earlier 19th c. (often seen on band swords and such). Most of these seem like they had a capstan on the pommel. I have not found anything in either Brinckerhoff & Chamberlain nor Neumann that truly corresponds however.

The hilt itself does appear assembled with the iron three bar guard. This seems to agree with other Spanish colonial blacksmith type work. I have seen a solid brass briquet hilt mounted with an iron three bar guard as well as a well cut down blade of this exact form. The lionhead is the true anomaly, but I agree with the period you suggest, probably more into early 19th c.

In 2005 there was a discussion concerning one of Custer's swords which he allegedly took in combat from a Confederate officer in the Civil War. The sword had a 19th century hilt of American military brass form, but had an unusually large blade of the Solingen form with three fullers, and the 'Spanish motto'. In 2007 I located the sword itself in the museum at the Little Bighorn in Montana, as well as biographical evidence that suggests that the sword was a war trophy actually given to him for his sword collection. It would seem that the Confederate officer from whom the sword was captured might have in turn gained the blade as a heirloom from the Mexican-American war c.1846. Mexican officers seem to have very much favored heirloom blades.

I would suspect this lionhead sword probably was put together in the latter 1820's by a by a blacksmith in the northern frontiers in Mexico, and possibly with the lionhead hilt component joined with the three bar guard. The guard seems a bit bent around. I think these often roughly fashioned swords from the very beginnings of Mexico are really fascinating! To me they are as rugged as the country itself, and having spent nearly two months in the Sonoran desert truly gave me some genuine perspective on that!

All the best,
Jim

7th April 2008, 05:06 AM	#53
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,192	Hi Mark, The actual grip/pommel in brass with lionhead seems of the style seen in mid 18th century on American and some English swords, but the beveled solid brass hilt seems more like English swords earlier 19th c. (often seen on band swords and such). Most of these seem like they had a capstan on the pommel. I have not found anything in either Brinckerhoff & Chamberlain nor Neumann that truly corresponds however. The hilt itself does appear assembled with the iron three bar guard. This seems to agree with other Spanish colonial blacksmith type work. I have seen a solid brass briquet hilt mounted with an iron three bar guard as well as a well cut down blade of this exact form. The lionhead is the true anomaly, but I agree with the period you suggest, probably more into early 19th c. In 2005 there was a discussion concerning one of Custer's swords which he allegedly took in combat from a Confederate officer in the Civil War. The sword had a 19th century hilt of American military brass form, but had an unusually large blade of the Solingen form with three fullers, and the 'Spanish motto'. In 2007 I located the sword itself in the museum at the Little Bighorn in Montana, as well as biographical evidence that suggests that the sword was a war trophy actually given to him for his sword collection. It would seem that the Confederate officer from whom the sword was captured might have in turn gained the blade as a heirloom from the Mexican-American war c.1846. Mexican officers seem to have very much favored heirloom blades. I would suspect this lionhead sword probably was put together in the latter 1820's by a by a blacksmith in the northern frontiers in Mexico, and possibly with the lionhead hilt component joined with the three bar guard. The guard seems a bit bent around. I think these often roughly fashioned swords from the very beginnings of Mexico are really fascinating! To me they are as rugged as the country itself, and having spent nearly two months in the Sonoran desert truly gave me some genuine perspective on that! All the best, Jim